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The 2012 CEO All-Stars and Dimmed Stars

Here are four business all-stars of 2012, leaders who stand out for executing brilliantly or distinguishing themselves in the larger forum of social and civic responsibility. Below them I list four stars who lost luster, leaders who were noteworthy because their stellar performance or reputations took a hit. And finally I suggest some aspiring stars to keep an eye on in 2013.

Hand-picked and groomed by Steve Jobs to succeed him, Apple chief executive Tim Cook oversaw the launch of two must-have products, the iPad 4 and the iPhone 5. Following in the footsteps of the charismatic Jobs would be a tough act for anyone. Cook’s low-key style belies his relentless focus on customer experience and awesome design. His recent announcement that he will manufacture a line of Macs in the U.S. means adding 200 new jobs and putting Apple’s weight behind corporate domestic job growth.

With founder Bezos at the helm, Amazon goes from strength to strength. The stock is up 30% this year. His laser focus on the customer and ongoing investment in disruptive innovations has created a globally hypercompetitive and nimble retailing giant.

The Most Successful Spinoff Artist: Irene Rosenfeld, former CEO Kraft, CEO, Mondelez International

Rosenfeld is a superstar in the food and beverage industry, with earlier successes as Kraft CEO including integrating the Nabisco and Cadbury businesses. In 2012 she spearheaded the hugely complex spinoff of Kraft into two public companies, Kraft and Mondelez. She continues as CEO of Mondelez, with $36 billion in revenue, and she has described the job as running “the world’s biggest startup.”

Schultz took a highly public position last summer with a full-page ad in The New York Times launching a pledge drive to stop all political campaign contributions until politicians reach “a fair, bipartisan deal” to control the nation’s skyrocketing debt. He launched a second drive, also aimed at business leaders, to take unilateral actions to jump start the economy and hire more employees

THE 2012 CEO DIMMED STARS

The Too-Big-to-Know-It-All CEO: Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase

Just when he was trying to convince Congress and regulators that banks didn’t need more regulation or reform, the seemingly invincible Dimon became Exhibit A for his opponents with the $6 billion “London Whale” trading fiasco. The king of Wall Street didn’t have the details, for once.

The Boldest Palace Coup by a CEO: Jim Roger, Duke Energy

Hours after the merger between Duke Energy and rival Progress Energy in July, a deal that created the country’s largest electric company, CEO Bill Johnson was ousted by the board and replaced by Duke Energy CEO Jim Roger. Johnson, the head of Progress Energy, had been promised the CEO job for 18 months of post-merger integration. Roger is now set to step down at the end of 2013 as part of a settlement with the North Carolina Utilities Commission investigation into the deal.

SOLAR FLARE-UP OF THE YEAR

The Boldest Palace Coup by a Chairman: Michael O’Neill, Citigroup

The sudden departure of CEO Vikram Pandit less than 24 hours after reporting favorable third-quarter results stunned Wall Street. O’Neill, who became chairman in April on the departure of Richard Parsons, wasted little time in spearheading a change at the top of the nation’s third largest bank.

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